Kevin James LaBrie was born May 5, 1963, in Penetanguishene, Ontario, Canada. He started singing when he was 5, and at age 18, moved to Toronto to pursue music full-time. In 1988, he met Canadian musician Richard Chycki and they formed the band Winter Rose. Shortly thereafter, Winter Rose went into the studio and recorded a number of original songs, however, these songs did not see the light of day until released by InsideOut in 1997.
In 1991, Kevin heard that Dream Theater was looking for a lead vocalist, and sent a tape to New York. He was quickly flown down for a full audition, and was chosen over 200 others to become their lead vocalist. Because the group already had two Johns, it was felt that having two Kevins in the band (LaBrie and Moore) would be too much. As a result, Kevin adopted his middle name, James, as his stage name.
It had been rumored that after the success of Dream Theater's sophomore effort Images and Words in 1992, James was considered to replace Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden and Rob Halford of Judas Priest, but opted to remain with Dream Theater. However, these rumors have never been officially confirmed and are most likely untrue. He continued to tour and record with Dream Theater, and in 1994, recorded their third album, Awake. This album contains James' first lyrical contribution to the band with the song "Caught in a Web" he has contributed lyrics to every album released since.
James has released four solo albums; two as Mullmuzzer and two others, Elements of Persuasion and Static Impulse, under his own name. In addition to solo projects James has also been a guest contributor on other projects with artists such as Ayreon, Explorer's Club, and the classically influenced True Symphonic Rockestra. He currently resides in Midland, Ontario, with his wife Karen, daughter Chloe, and son Chance.
Photo by m0n5t3r, used under Creative Commons